T-shirt

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A T-shirt (or tee shirt) is a shirt, usually buttonless, collarless, and pocketless, with a round neck and short sleeves, that is pulled on over the head and covers most of a person's torso. The sleeves of the T-shirt extend at least slightly over the shoulder but not completely over the elbow. A shirt that is either longer or shorter than this ceases to be a T-shirt, at least in the classic sense.

T-shirts are typically made of cotton or polyester fibers (or a mix of the two), knitted together in a jersey stitch that gives a T-shirt its distinctive soft texture. T-shirts are often decorated with text and/or pictures.

T-shirt fashions include styles for men and women, and for all age groups, including baby, youth and adult sizes.

Contents 1 History 2 Trends 3 Decoration 4 Messages 5 Manufacturing 6 Further reading 7 See also 8 References 9 External links

[edit] History

In the 19th century, the idea of underwear developed, which had not been common before. At some point near the turn of the century, the underwear shirt was developed; the shirt was always a part of clothing since ancient Egypt, though it slowly became more and more popular. Hence there have been many garments that resemble the T-shirt,^[1] The general trend supported less clothing, which prudent morale had forbidden until the 19th century.

Most research mentions that the idea of the T-shirt came to the United States during World War I when US soldiers noticed the light cotton undershirts European soldiers were wearing while the US soldiers sweated in their wool uniforms. Since they were so much more comfortable, they quickly became popular among the Americans, and because of their shape like the letter "T", they were called "T-shirts".

Other experts credit the U.S. Navy's "light undershirt" from 1913, described with "elastic collarette on the neck opening, called "crew neck".^[2] The Los Angeles Times claimed in 2006 that the Navy shirt as described in 1913's regulations state that what they refer to as the "light undershirt" was different from what is commonly worn today, with the Navy's version boasting an "elastic collarette on the neck opening" and other odd features.^[3]

On these grounds, there are claims that Howard Jones asked the underwear company "Jockey" in 1932 to develop a sweat absorbing shirt for the USC football team, which they propose was the "modern T-Shirt".^[3][4]

The origin of the name is uncertain: many refer to the shape of the shirt as a "T", while it could also emphasize the use of the army as a "training shirt". The shape-based theory is supported by the existence of an A-shirt in the 1930's USA, which was the usual undershirt later labelled the tank top.

During World War II, the T-shirt had become standard issue underwear in both the U.S. Army and the Navy. Although the T-shirt was formally underwear, soldiers often used it without a shirt covering it while doing heavy labor or while stationed in locations with a hot climate. As a result, the public was frequently exposed to pictures of members of the armed forces wearing pants and a T-shirt. This gradually became more acceptable, as the cover of the July 13, 1942 issue of Life magazine shows, which features a picture of a soldier wearing a T-shirt with the text "Air Corps Gunnery School"^[5]).

After World War II, the T-shirt started appearing in civilian life without a shirt covering it. According to the New York Times, the 1948 presidential campaign of New York Governor Thomas E. Dewey produced a "Dew It for Dewey" T-shirt, which was followed in 1952 by "I Like Ike" T-shirts in support of Dwight D. Eisenhower. John Wayne, Marlon Brando and James Dean all wore them on national TV. At first the public was shocked, but by 1955, it had become acceptable.^[6]

Trivia: The world record for the most T-shirts worn at once, as listed in the Guinness Book of World Records, was broken on December 9, 2006 by Aaron John Waltke of Bloomington, Indiana, with a total of 160 t-shirts worn at one time. The shirts ranged from size Small to 10XL. The former world record holder was Matt McAllister of Santa Barbara, California.^[4]

[edit] Trends

T-shirts were originally worn as undershirts. This still occurs, but T-shirts are now also frequently worn as the only piece of clothing on the top half of the body (other than possibly a bra). T-shirts have also become a medium for self-expression and advertising, with any imaginable combination of words, art and even photographs on display.

In the early 1950s several companies based in Miami, Florida started to decorate tee shirts with different resort names and various characters. The first company was Tropix Togs, under founder Sam Kantor, in Miami. They were the original licensee for Walt Disney characters that included Mickey Mouse and Davey Crockett. Later other companies expanded into the tee shirt printing business that included Sherry Manufacturing Company also based in Miami. Sherry started in 1948 by its owner and founder Quinton Sandler as a screen print scarf business and evolved into one of the largest screen printed resort and licensed apparel companies in the United States.

A T-shirt typically extends to the waist, although one fashion is for "oversized" T-shirts, namely in modern hip hop fashion (a perfect example of this can be clearly seen in the song, White Tee, by Dem Franchize Boyz). A more recent trend in women's clothing involves tight-fitting "cropped" T-shirts that are short enough to reveal the midriff. Another popular trend is wearing a long-sleeved T-shirt, then putting a short sleeved shirt of a different color over the long sleeved shirt.

In the 1960s, the Ringer T-shirt appeared and became a staple fashion for youth and rock-n-rollers. The decade also saw the emergence of tie-dyeing and screen-printing on the basic T-shirt. In 1959 when plastisol, a more durable and stretchable ink, was invented allowing much more variety in t-shirt designs.^[7]

In the 1970s the Black concert T-shirt started to become a fashion trend of rock music fans around the world.

Variants of the T-shirt, such as the tank top, A-shirt (with the nickname "wife beater"), muscle shirt, scoop neck, V-neck etc. eventually came into use.

The early 2000s used the internet to continue the modern phenomenon of "personal branding". Companies such as Threadless and CafePress make it easy for people to create their own designs, while creating online communities of fellow T-shirt designers and consumers. These internet based social networking companies build communities of people through the design and distribution of t-shirts.

[edit] Decoration

The most common form of commercial t-shirt decoration is screen-printing. In screen-printing, a design is separated into individual colors. Plastisol or water based inks are applied to the shirt through mesh screens which limits the areas where ink is deposited. In most commercial t-shirt printing, the specific colors in the design are used. To achieve a wider color spectrum with a limited number of colors, process printing (using only cyan, magenta, yellow and black ink) or simulated process (using only white, black, red, green, blue, and gold ink) is effective. Process printing is best suited for light colored shirts. Simulated process is best suited for dark colored shirts.

Other methods of decoration used on T-shirts include airbrush, applique, embroidery, impressing or embossing and the ironing on of either flock lettering, heat transfers, or Dye Sublimation transfers. Laser printers are capable of printing on plain paper using a special toner containing sublimation dyes which can then be permanently heat-transferred to T-shirts.

In the 1980s, thermochromatic dyes were used to produce T-shirts that changed colour when subjected to heat. This brand of T-shirt, Global Hypercolour, was a common sight on the streets of the UK for a few years, but has since mostly disappeared. These were very popular in the United States as well in the late 80's among teens. A downside of color-change garments is that the dyes can easily be damaged, especially by washing in warm water. It can also stain the other clothes which are washed together in the washing machine.

[edit] Messages

Since the late 1980s and especially the 1990s, T-shirts with prominent designer-name logos have been popular, especially with teenagers and young adults. These garments allowed consumers to flaunt their taste in designer brands in an inexpensive way, in addition to being decorative. Examples of designer T-shirt branding include Calvin Klein, FUBU, Ralph Lauren, and The Gap.

Screen printed T-shirts have been a standard form of product advertising for major consumer products, such as Coca-cola and Mickey Mouse, since the 1970s. However, since the 1990s, it has become common practice for companies of all sizes to produce T-shirts with their corporate logos or messages as part of their overall advertising campaigns.

The early 2000s saw the renewed popularity of T-shirts with slogans and designs with a strong inclination to the humorous and/or ironic. The trend has only increased later in this decade; embraced by celebrities, such as Britney Spears and Paris Hilton, and reflected back on them, too ('Team Aniston').

The story of the message tee embraces the modern phenomenon of “personal branding” (indicating, in this case, the wearer’s sense of humor), as well as a climate in which statements—political or personal—are generally preferred to be catchy than true. Notable was the popularity of political slogans and messages on T-shirts coinciding with the presidential election.

The political and social statements that T-shirts often display have become, since the 2000s, one of the reasons that they have so deeply permeated different levels of culture and society. The statements also may be found to be offensive, shocking or pornographic to some. Many different organizations have caught on to the statement-making trend, including chain and independent stores, websites, and schools.

[edit] Manufacturing

Most T-shirts are made from cotton, polyester, or a blend of the two materials. The manufacturing process is simple and almost completely automated in most cases. Machines cut, assemble, and stitch together the shirts, most commonly using narrow, superimposed seams.^[8]

[edit] Further reading

• Scott Fresener, Earl Smith, Nancy Hall (1995). The T-Shirt Book. Gibbs Smith Publisher. ISBN 0-87905-686-X. 

[edit] See also

• Wet T-shirt contest
• Ringer T-shirt
• Black Concert T-Shirt
• Inkjet transfer

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• How to Fold a Shirt - (www.howtofoldashirt.net) Comedic website involving T-shirts.

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